Ex., Thurles Hospital, Thurles, Co Tipperary

Issue 5 [ISSN 2009-2237]

Archaeological Excavation Report04E0599 - Hospital of the Assumption, Thurles, Co. Tipperary

Burials

Eachtra Journal

The Forge,Innishannon, Co. Cork.Tel.: 021 470 16 16Fax: 021 470 16 28E-mail: [email protected] Site: www.eachtra.ie

Cork

March 2010.

Written by:

Client:

Archaeological Excavation Report,Hospital of the Assumption,Thurles,Co. Tipperary.

Burials

Mid-Western Health Board,c/o O’Riordan Staehli Architects,Schoolhouse Studio, Carrigaline Rd., Douglas,Cork.

50/1919

04E0599

Bruce Sutton

Bruce Sutton

Planning Register No.:

Licence No.:

Licensee:

Anluan DunneProduced by:

Permalink: http://eachtra.ie/index.php/journal/e0599-gortataggart-co-tipperary/

Hospital of the Assumption, Thurles, Co. Tipperary ISSUE 5: Eachtra Journal - ISSN 2009-223704E0599

iii

Table of Contents

Introduction .............................................................................................................1

Development site location and topography .......................................................1

Description of Development..................................................................................1

Archaeological and historical background .......................................................1

Results of excavation ..............................................................................................2

Excavated grave cuts and human skeletal remains ...........................................3

Coffins .......................................................................................................................5

Conclusions ...............................................................................................................6

Unexcavated Graves ................................................................................................7

Bibliography .............................................................................................................8



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IntroductionEachtra Archaeological Projects initially sought a li-cense to monitor all groundworks associated with the development under licence 04E0599.This was carried out under planning reference 50/1919. Condition 1 of the planning permission stated that:‘The developer shall engage an archaeologist licensed un-der the National Monuments Acts 1930-1954 to monitor all ground disturbance associated with the development. If archaeological monitoring of the site reveals archaeo-logical material preservation in situ or excavation may be required and the archaeologist shall be empowered to halt development works in order to record exposed archaeo-logical material. Duchas (National Monuments) and the Local Authority shall be furnished with a report on the archaeological monitoring when completed’.

During the course of archaeological monitoring of a pipe trench in the south-western corner of the site (Fig-ure 1) seven graves were uncovered, licence 04E0599 was then extended to allow rescue excavation in ad-vance of development. During excavation the location of an additional ten graves were recorded, giving a to-tal of seventeen. Due to the location and depth of the burials only six required excavation, resulting in the removal of the skeletal remains of nine individuals, five adults and two juveniles, along with the excavation of the associated grave cuts. The National Museum of Ire-land was consulted with regards to the re-covering the unexcavated graves. No other features were recorded on the site.

Development site location and topographyThe development site is located in the townland of Gortataggart on the site of an existing hospital, to be demolished in three stages, and situated on the north-west outskirts of Thurles town (Figure 2) next to the existing Thurles General Hospital. The site lies directly to the west of the Dublin to Cork railway line, which runs through Thurles town.

Description of DevelopmentThe Mid-Western Health Board was granted planning permission to demolish the existing community hospi-tal and erect a new community hospital, site entrance, carparking and site works at The Hospital of the As-sumption, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

Archaeological and historical backgroundDespite a lack of archaeological evidence for a pre-Norman settlement of Thurles, the placename Dúrlas, meaning Strong Fort in Irish, has survived almost un-changed throughout the course of history and suggests that the town was of significant importance (Carey & Farrelly 1994,). In 844, Saint Ciarán came to Thurles seeking retribution for a raid on Clonmacnoise by Feidhlimid mac Crimthainn, and in 1174 and 1192, Domhnaill Ua Briain defeated Norman armies at Thurles (ibid.).

The Record of Monuments and Places lists the town of Thurles as TN041-042, and shows it situated in the centre of a ring of Early Christian monuments in the form of ringforts and enclosures, with a Church site and cemetery (TN041-04203) at the western extreme of the town limits, across the Cork-Dublin railway line. Thurles was originally a walled town, similar in scale to Clonmel, and two towerhouses survive today - one at either end of the town. ‘Black Castle’ (TN041-04201), an extant tower house at the western end of the town just outside of the town walls, was constructed in or around the 15th or 16th century (ibid.). To the north of this, in the extreme NW corner of the town walls, there is the site of a motte (TN041-04204), long since destroyed, which may also have served as a mural tow-er or bastion. The second towerhouse of Thurles is situ-ated on the western side of the River Suir on the south side of Barry’s Bridge, and is known as ‘Bridge Castle’ (TN041-04202). No precise date is recorded for its construction, but it is likely to be mid-15th century in date (ibid.).

The Union Workhouse at Thurles was located in the northwest of Thurles, in the townland of Gortataggart (Figure 3). It was opened on the 9th of November 1842, and was built to accommodate seven hundred people. After one month of being opened there were over one hundred inmates, nearly half of which were children under the age of 15 (Lanigan 1989).

The workhouse system, the first organized state effort to alleviate individual private poverty, was initiated to provide food, clothing and shelter to those completely destitute. Inmates were subject to harsh laws in the workhouse and there was a strict separation of age groups and sexes. Once inside adults were forbidden to leave and children could only do so under the supervi-sion of a teacher. One of the cornerstones of the ‘work-



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house test’ was the breaking up of families upon their admission. In Thurles, trouble making was punished in varying degrees of severity, ranging from the stopping of milk for 2 days to a period of confinement to a dark room for short periods (ibid.). These measures were put in place to ensure that only the extremely poor, who had no other option, would apply to be admitted to the workhouses.

123 workhouses were originally constructed around the country, and they were all constructed along the same lines. They consisted of an enclosing outer wall and three buildings, with dividing inner walls. The front building consisted of a probationary ward, clerk’s office and boardroom. The probationary ward was used to house new inmates until they could be examined by the medical officer and declared free of disease, upon which they were washed, given clothes and released into the main area. The main building, typically a long two-storied structure, housed the inmates, with males to the right and females to the left. This was further separated with two associated exercise yards, one at the front for children, and one at the rear for adults (ibid.). A high dividing wall separated these yards, although this did little to deter inmates from climbing between them. They were divided into five classes, based on age and gender; these were children under 1, boys 2-15, males over 15, girls 2-15 and females over 15, with in-mates that were released from the front building joining the appropriate group in the main building, and once there communication between the classes was forbid-den, although there were some exceptions (ibid.).The third building in the complex was the infirmary, which included the hospital and wards ‘ for idiots, epi-leptics and lunatics’ (ibid.). The outer wall of the Thurles workhouse was 12ft high and enclosed an area of six acres. The only legitimate entry point was the main gate, located at the front of the site, ‘where all persons, goods and parcels were checked upon entering or leaving, rendering the establish-ment secure’ (ibid.). This of course did not include the scaling of the outer wall by both inmates and officers, of which a number (along with their corresponding punishment) are recorded (ibid.). The three workhouse buildings at Thurles were of poor construction result-ing from ‘ faulty workmanship and inferior building materials’. Early fires were recorded in the kitchen, the roof leaked, doors fell down and new drains had to be dug for the cesspool (ibid.).Famine was one contingency the workhouse system in general had not been designed for and in 1846, only four years after its first admissions, the Thurles work-

house exceeded the 700 inmates it was originally de-signed for, with 791 inmates recorded in December of that year (ibid.). The number of inmates continued to rise until it reached its maximum in 1850, when it is recorded that ‘the Thurles workhouse supported no less than 3,623 individuals’ (ibid.), over five times the originally designed capacity, and despite measures to relocate many of the paupers, there were over 2,000 in the main workhouse building alone in 1852, resulting in the use of additional buildings outside the original walled enclosure.The overpopulation of the workhouse, and the already poor health of many new inmates, meant that disease was rife. Between the years of 1847 and 1851 it is re-corded that over 3000 individuals died from disease and malnutrition, with over half of these being chil-dren under the age of 15 (ibid.). From the opening of the workhouse in 1842, until 1846, the unclaimed dead had been buried in neighbouring graveyards. From 1846 this was no longer possible, meaning that individuals had to be buried in the grounds of the workhouse itself, with some recorded as being ‘a mere two feet below the surface’ (ibid.). In 1850, when the population was at its maximum, land was purchased at the rear of the infirmary grounds for use as a grave-yard. These walled graveyards are still visible today and are located to the northeast and southeast, only a short distance from the original workhouse complex and ex-ercise yards (Figure 4).The large number of people applying for admission to the workhouse in the mid 19th century can be seen as an indicator of conditions at this time. Despite the harsh conditions imposed on inmates people still wanted to enter, and those that did manage to gain admission were viewed as fortunate to be given cloth-ing, food and shelter, however poor, when compared with those paupers who existed outside. Anne Lanigan (1989) writes ‘a youth named Power was found dead of starvation in a field adjoining the workhouse; the previ-ous day he had been observed plucking the feathers off a seagull and preparing to eat it’. This serves to give some insight into the level of poverty and starvation that ex-isted outside of the workhouse environment during the main famine years of 1847 and 1851.

Results of excavationA single trench was excavated in the southwest of the site along the proposed route of a sewage outlet for the new buildings currently under construction at the Hospital of the Assumption. The trench was 24.5m in length, 1.25m wide and was excavated to a maximum depth of 1.4m below the cur-



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rent ground surface (Figure 5 & Plate 1). The trench was extended to the south at the western and eastern ends and to the north across the entire length, this was to enable the excavation of burials that lay only partial-ly on the line of the development. This extension of the excavated area resulted in the exposure of a number of graves that were to remain undisturbed by the line of the sewage pipe. Upon consultation with the National Museum it was agreed that the remaining burials were to be covered with terram and 0.15m of sand. All of the undisturbed burials were covered in this manner.The upper 0.4m of the trench comprised of the modern ground surface layer of tarmac and gravel (C.42) that covered the entire site. Beneath this was a mixed layer of 19th century build-up (C.8), a moderately compact mid to dark brown mixture of clay, sand, and silt with moderate stone inclusions and occasional inclusions of glass, white glazed pottery and animal bone. This material was fairly uniform across the site with a maxi-mum depth of 1m at the deepest point of the trench. This lay above C.9, a compact orange/brown/light grey sandy clay natural with large stone inclusions. The trench was excavated into the natural subsoil (C.9) at the western and eastern ends (Plate 2). In the centre of the trench C.8 was deeper than the excavated depth. It was in this area of the trench that burials were left in situ in the base. At the western and eastern ends skel-etal remains were visible in section.

During the course of monitoring a number of burials were uncovered along the pipe trench these varied in depth with the deepest being recorded at 1.4m below the current ground surface. In total 17 burials were ex-posed, however only 6 of these were to be disturbed by the sewage pipe, either fully or partially. All of the ex-cavated burials were located at the western and eastern ends of the pipe trench, as the ones uncovered in the centre were below the depth of the pipe

Excavated grave cuts and human skeletal remainsGrave cut C.10 contained skeleton C.1, which was the initial burial discovered and turned out to be the re-mains of 2 individuals, which were later designated 1A and 1B. It was in the eastern end of the trench, was orientated east-west, and was oval in plan with sharp break of slope at the top, concave sides, gradual break of slope at the base and rounded base. The eastern half of the grave had been completely truncated during moni-toring as this was the initial burial to be discovered. It was filled with C.11, mid brown moderately compact

sandy clay with small stone inclusions that was similar to the surrounding natural. As the fill of the cut was quite similar to the surrounding material into which it was cut the burial was not discovered until the skeleton was initially exposed, therefore the true depth of the cut in unknown. The lower half of C.1 (feet, legs, pelvis and 4 vertebrae) was truncated by machine and the condition of the re-maining bone was either broken or crushed (Plate 3). The burial is orientated east-west, with the feet at the eastern end. The skull had fallen to the side and faced to the north. The skeleton was prone and extended, with the arms along the sides of the body. Initially it was thought that this skeleton had been disturbed, but on excavation it turned out to be the remains of two indi-viduals mixed in together. It should be noted that there was only one skull and it is unclear to which burial it belongs, although 2 mandibles were lifted, suggesting that the burial was disturbed prior to its uncovering by machine. No coffin was recorded with this burial.

Grave cut C.18 contained burial C.7 and was oval east-west orientated, measured roughly 1m long, 0.25m wide and 0.4m deep with rounded corners, sharp break of slope top, straight sides, gradual break of slope base and flat base. It contained C.21, coffin remains, which comprised of a number of coffin nails and small pieces of timber scattered around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed. A number of the nails were lo-cated just to the west of the feet indicating the western end of the coffin, which appeared to have been quite tight around the skeleton. The grave was filled with C.19, mid brown firm/moist sandy clay with moderate small to medium stone inclusions. This grave was cut by later burial C.23. As the fill of the cut was quite similar to the surrounding material into which it was cut the burial was not discovered until the skeleton was initially exposed, therefore the true depth of the cut in unknown.C.7 was the partial remains of a juvenile skeleton that had been truncated by later grave cut C.23. The skel-eton appeared to have been prone and extended (Plate 4). The bone was in good condition but was broken. The humerus, radius and half of the ulna lay extended. The right and left legs appeared also to be extended. The right leg was missing the tibia and the left leg was missing the femur. The feet were together. The skeleton was orientated east-west with the feet at the western end of the grave cut. Coffin nails (C.21) were located in and around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed.



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Grave cut C.20 was a sub-rectangular east-west ori-entated grave cut 0.97m long, 0.42m wide and 0.55m deep with sharp break of slope top, near vertical sides and gradual sides, gradual break of slope base and flat base. It contained C4, a juvenile skeleton (Plate 5), and C.31, coffin remains, which comprised of a number of coffin nails and small pieces of timber scattered around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed. A number of the nails were located just to the west of the feet indicating the western end of the coffin, which appeared to have been quite tight around the skeleton. The grave was filled with C.32, soft mid orange brown silty clay with moderate small stone inclusions. The cut was truncated slightly in the northwest corner. As the fill of the cut was quite similar to the surrounding ma-terial into which it was cut the burial was not discov-ered until the skeleton was initially exposed, therefore the true depth of the cut in unknown.C.4 was the remains of a juvenile in good condition but with some bones broken. The skeleton was in the flexed position (Figure 6). It was orientated east-west, with the feet at the eastern end. It was lying on its right side with the right arm below the body. The skull was crushed, the left arm and hand were missing and only the partial remains of one foot was present. Coffin nails (C.31) and small pieces of timber were present in and around the skeleton from where the coffin had collapsed.

Grave cut C.23 was a sub-rectangular east-west orien-tated grave cut 1.2m long, 0.35m wide and 0.2m deep with rounded corners, sharp break of slope top and bot-tom, concave sides and flat base, which sloped to the west. It contained C.22, a juvenile skeleton, and C.25, coffin remains, which comprised of a number of coffin nails and small pieces of timber scattered around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed. A number of the nails were located just to the west of the feet in-dicating the western end of the coffin, which appeared to have been quite tight around the skeleton. The grave was filled with C.24, moderately compact mid brown sandy clay with moderate small stone inclusions. It ap-peared as though a medium to large stone had been removed at the western end of the cut prior to the lay-ing of the coffin, it was into this stone socket that the skull of skeleton C.22 had fallen into after decay of the coffin. This Grave cut through earlier burial C.18, and the partial remains of juvenile skeleton C.7 were mixed in with C.22. As the fill of the cut was quite similar to the surrounding material into which it was cut the burial was not discovered until the skeleton was initially exposed, therefore the true depth of the cut in

unknown. Skeleton C.22 was originally thought to be a disturbed juvenile skeleton (Plate 6). Upon excavation it was dis-covered that it was the remains of a single individual, with the remains of another mixed in. This skeleton was orientated east-west with the feet at the eastern end of grave cut C.23. This burial cut through juvenile skel-eton C.7 and it is assumed that the additional bones are from this earlier inhumation. The bone was in good condition and was both whole and broken. There was a depression at the western end of the cut, possibly from the removal of a stone prior to the laying of the coffin, and the skull had fallen back into this hole so that the mandible pointed vertically. The partial remains of a crushed skull (C.7) also lay at the western end of the grave cut. The skeleton of the juvenile had shifted to its left, the spine had shifted and become disarticulat-ed and the ribcage on this left side had collapsed over the arm. Both the left and right arms were extended and lay under the ribcage. Both the right and left legs were extended. Only half of the right foot remained and there was no left foot. The mixed in remains of C.7 made it difficult to identify what bones belonged to each skeleton as both appeared to be of a similar age. Coffin nails (C.25) were visible in and around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed.

Grave cut C.26 was sub-rectangular in plan and orien-tated east-west. It measured 1.88m long, 0.42m wide and 0.15m deep with rounded corners, gradual break of slope at top and bottom, concave sides and flat base. It contained C.27, a juvenile skeleton, C.28, an adult skeleton, and C.29, coffin remains, which comprised of a number of coffin nails and small pieces of timber scattered around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed. A number of the nails were located just to the west of the feet indicating the western end of the coffin, which appeared to have been quite tight around the skeletons. The grave was filled with c.30, soft mid brown clay with moderate small stone inclusions. The northern edge of the cut could not be fully excavated due to the presence of a modern manhole. As the fill of the cut was quite similar to the surrounding mate-rial into which it was cut the burial was not discovered until the skeleton was initially exposed, therefore the true depth of the cut in unknown. Juvenile skeleton C.27 was east-west orientated, with the feet towards the east and lay in grave cut C.26 (Plate 7). The bone was in good condition but broken in places. The skull was crushed and the vertebrae were disarticulated. The left arm was extended, but miss-ing the hand apart from one or two fingers, and the



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right arm lay extended under the right ribs, which had collapsed. The right leg was extended with epiphyses present. The left leg consisted of only the top half or a femur and there were no feet. This juvenile burial lay on the left side of adult skeleton C.28 (Figure 7). Both were in the same coffin and were buried together. After decay the skeleton of C.27 had collapsed into the ribcage of that below, disarticulating the vertebrae. The burial appeared to have been disturbed at some point due to the fact that there were no feet and that the lower left leg was missing. Coffin nails (C.29) were visible in and around the body from where the coffin had collapsed.Skeleton C.28 was an adult skeleton that lay under C.27 in cut C.26. It was east-west orientated, with the feet towards the east. The condition of the bone was good but had been broken or crushed in places. The skull had broken and had fallen back and to the left (Plate 7). The body had collapsed slightly to the left in general, probably because of the presence of C.27 on that side. The ribcage lay over the left arm and the spine had shifted slightly to the left. Both arms were extended with the right hand lying under the pelvis and the left hand on top. Both legs were extended and the feet were together. This skeleton was buried in the same coffin as juvenile C.27. Coffin nails (C.29) were visible in and around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed.

Grave cut C.34 measured 2.75m long, 0.55m wide and 0.5m deep (Figure 8). It was sub-rectangular with rounded corners, sharp break of slope at top and bot-tom, steep straight and concave sides and flat base. It contained adult skeletons C.5 & C.33 and C.36 coffin remains, which comprised of a number of coffin nails and small pieces of timber scattered around the burial from where the coffin had collapsed. A number of the nails were located just to the west of the feet indicating the western end of the coffin, which appeared to have been quite tight around the skeletons. The cut was filled with C.35, soft mid brown sandy clay with moderate small stone inclusions. This grave cut was discovered when the skeleton was found partially in section and partially within the trench, the surviving cut is more substantial than others excavated (Plate 8), however the full depth of the grave is still unknown. Skeleton C.5 was an adult, which lay prone and ex-tended in grave cut C.34 and was orientated east-west (Plate 8), with the feet at the eastern end. The bone was generally in good condition, but with some bro-ken bones. The skull was intact and upright, with the jaw resting on the vertebrae. Both arms were extended

along the side of the body. The right arm lay under the pelvis but the hand lay on the right leg, indicating a shift after decay. The left arm lay above the pelvis, as did the hand. The carpals from neither hand were visible. The ribcage had collapsed and a number of the ribs had broken. The right scapula was missing, as was the top of the right arm and the left half of the pelvis had been crushed. Both legs were extended, angled slightly inwards to meet at the knees and both feet were together. Coffin nails (C.36) were located in and around the burial from where the coffin had col-lapsed. Skeleton C.5 lay directly above C.33, another adult skeleton in the same cut and coffin. It appeared as both individuals were buried at the same time as they lay in the same coffin and the attitudes of their bodies was almost identical, the long bones from C.33 were directly under c.5 (Figure 9).C.33 was the lower adult skeleton in grave cut C.34. It lay prone and extended with an east-west orientation. The bone was in poor to good condition. The skull had fallen back and to the left so that the mandible lay along the side of skull C.5. The vertebrae and ribs of the skeleton were mixed in with C.5. Both arms were extended and lay under the body with the fingers on the pelvis. The legs were extended and came together at the knees. The feet were together and were mixed in with those of C.5. The position of this skeleton was almost identical to c.5, with the arms and legs being positioned directly below those of the upper skeleton. The skeletons of C.5 and C.33 were bagged together, although the skulls were lifted separately. Coffin nails (C.36) were visible in and around this skeleton from where the coffin had collapsed.

CoffinsAlthough the coffins were given separate numbers within the individual graves, a single description was given to them as they remained constant in each bur-ial. The remains of the coffins consisted of small rusty nails with pieces of timber occasionally still attached. The nails were scattered in and around the burials, from where the coffin had decayed and collapsed. A small number were taken from the outer side of the arms and in most of the graves nails were present at the feet.



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ConclusionsThe archaeology excavated at The Hospital of the As-sumption, Thurles, consisted of six graves. All of these were orientated in the Christian fashion, east-west, with the feet at the western end of the grave, and all but one of the grave cuts contained the remains of a wooden coffin. None of the graves (excavated or undis-turbed) had any form of marker or headstone indicat-ing their position in the cemetery. It seems unusual that care was taken to lay the recently deceased in to coffins but not to mark their location. We can only assume that any form of marker that existed has since been removed or decayed as it is highly unlikely that something as durable as stone would have been used for people of such poor means at this time of famine.In total the remains of nine individuals were excavated from the six graves. This small sample indicates that for every two graves across the site there are the re-mains of three individuals. This gives us some idea of the high death rate that must have existed in the work-house in the mid 19th century. Of course, the small number of burials excavated cannot be used to make generalisation on burials, but it can give us some idea. Of the nine individuals removed five were adults and four were children, indicating that, as mentioned in the historical background, half of the deaths at the workhouse were of children under the age of 15. The fact that juvenile grave C.23 truncates the earlier grave C.18, enables us to surmise that individuals were bur-ied here over an extended period of time, as the body of C.7 had to have been completely decayed before parts of the skeleton could be mixed in with C.22, and as mentioned the practise of burying the dead in the com-pound lasted some four years, from 1846 to 1850, until land was purchased at the rear of the enclosure for use as graveyards (Lanigan 1989). These walled graveyards are still visible to the northeast and southeast of the existing complex.

Table 1: Grave cuts and skeletal remains Grave cut Skeletons Gender? Age? Juvenile? Adult?

C.10 C.1A Male 30+ Yes C.1B Unknown 30+ Yes

C.18 C.7 unknown 5 Yes C.20 C.4 unknown 4-5 Yes C.23 C.22 unknown 6-7 Yes C.26 C.27 unknown 4-5 Yes

C.28 Female 36-45 YesC.34 C.5 Female 36-45 Yes

C.33 Male 45+ Yes

As can be seen above, three of the burials contained two individuals. Graves C.10 and C.34 contained the

remain of two adults, although the skeletal remains in C.10 were mixed in together, the two skeletons in C.34 (C.5 & C.33) were laid one on top of the other with al-most identical aspect, these two individuals were later identified as a male over the age of 45 and a female be-tween 36 and 45, possibly indicating a couple or elderly brother and sister. Grave C.26 contained the remains of C.27, a juvenile, and C.28, an adult female (see Ap-pendix 2.). The nature of this burial, with the juvenile placed on the adults left side, possibly indicates that this was a child and parent burial. What is unclear with these double burials is whether the individuals were interred in a single burial, or whether members of the same family, who died at different times, were laid into the same coffin as relatives that had died at an ear-lier date. If they were buried together then this raises the issue of contact, as each age group and sex were kept separate and it would seem coincidental, unless due to widespread disease, that family members died within a close enough time of each other to be buried together, or possibly that death had occurred shortly after entrance to the workhouse. In the case of C.26, the juvenile and adult, it is known that children under the age of 2 were allowed to remain with their mothers (Lanigan 1987, 57), however, the analysis of the skel-etal remains indicates that C.27 was 4-5 years of age and suffering from a long standing disease at the time of death and that C.28 had a number of conditions including tuberculosis (Fibiger 2004). It should also be noted that the three other juvenile graves contain single burials, whereas all of the adult burials contain the remains of two individuals.The sex of only four of the adult burials could be de-termined, with two males and two females being iden-tified. Of the adult remains, all were suffering from some form of dental problem such as caries, abscesses, calculus or enamel hypoplasia, and 48% of the adult’s teeth were lost during their lifetime, all of these are indicators of poor health and diet (ibid.). The adult re-mains also showed signs of suffering from some form of degenerative joint disease. Skeleton 33 suffered in the spine, temporal-mandibular joint, shoulder, ribs, foot, and had osteoarthritis of the left wrist. All of the other adults had similar conditions to various degrees. This degenerative joint disease is usually a sign of gen-eral wear and tear and it should be noted that the most affected of the adults, skeleton 33, is also the eldest. As can be expected with the overcrowded conditions of the workhouse, along with the poor hygiene and diet, disease seems to be common among the inmates. All but one of the juveniles were either suffering, or had recently suffered from, some form of long stand-



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ing disease at the time of death and two of the adults were suffering from tuberculosis (Plate 10). Only 3-5% of patients suffering from tuberculosis develop skeletal changes, and suggesting that tuberculosis would have been a common disease in the workhouse (ibid.). Skel-eton 28, one of those that suffered from tuberculosis, appears to have led quite a physically stressful life, she had also received a muscle or tendon injury in one of her feet, had a possible case of osteoporosis, which can be an indicator of a shortage of food and general hard-ship, and Schmorls nodes on the vertebrae, which are caused by heavy labour or lifting (ibid.).It is interesting to note the age ranges of the individu-als excavated. The four juveniles are between the ages of 4 and 7, and all of the adults are over the age of 30, with one being over 45. As mentioned previously half of the deaths in the workhouse were of children under the age of 15, our sample would seem to suggest that the age of child deaths should be lowered significantly as there were no identifiable skeletal remains excavated between the ages of 8 and 29. Our results also indicate that the mortality rate of individuals between these ages was very low compared with the very young and the relatively old, despite the fact that they would have been divided into the same age and sex groups, would have experienced the same conditions and been exposed to the same diseases. However it should be noted that the sample of individuals excavated is small in number and might not be representative of the population as a whole. The high mortality rate of the very young can be seen as a good indicator of the poor health condi-tions of the workhouse, especially as 3 of the 4 juve-niles excavated were suffering, or had recently suffered, from disease. The relatively low age of the adult burials along with the number of dental and physical health problems can also be seen as not just indicators of poor hygiene and health in the workhouse, but also of the generally harsh physical conditions that existed both inside and out at this time, as these older individuals would have entered the workhouse when they were al-ready adults.

Unexcavated Graves

Table 2: List of unexcavated skeletal remainsContext No Reason for remaining undisturbed

2Located in the southern section of the pipe trench

3 Located to the side of the pipe trench

6Located in the southern section of the pipe trench

38Located more than 0.15m below the height of the base of the pipe




Great care was taken to ensure that the minimum number of individuals required excavation, and that the burials left in-situ were preserved intact and undis-turbed by the excavation and subsequent works. It was for this reason that the National Museum of Ireland was consulted as to the proper procedure for re-cover-ing the human remains. It was agreed that the uncov-ered graves would be re-covered with a layer of terram and at least 0.15m of sand over the top. At the end of excavation all of the remaining graves were covered in this manner (Plates 11 & 12). Bone uncovered in the sections excavated to the side of the pipe trench during monitoring was covered with sand as per the instruc-tions from the museum. Skeletons C.2, C.3 and C.6 were all located to the side of the line of the pipe and were covered in this manner. C.38, C.39, C.40 and C.41 were located at the base of the excavated trench, which extended below the level of the base of the pipe and thus had exposed the additional skeletal remains. Levels were taken to ensure that none of the burials in the base of the trench were within 0.15m of the pro-posed pipe. The upper most unexcavated grave, C.41, was located 0.24m below the level of the base of the pipe. All of the underlying skeletons were covered as per the museum guidelines.



8

BibliographyCarey, H. & Farrelly, J., 1994, The Urban Archaeologi-cal Survey, County Tipperary North Riding, Office of Public Works, Dublin

Lanigan, A (1989) The Workhouse Child in Thurles 1840-1880, pp 55-80 in Thurles The Cathedral Town. Corbett , W. & Nolan, W. (eds). Geography Publica-tions, Dublin.



9

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15

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16

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17

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18

Figure 9: Pre-excavation of skeletons C.5 and C.33.



19

Plate 1: View of pipe trench from East.

Plate 2: View of pipe trench from West.



20

Plate 3: Skeletons 1A and 1B from East.

Plate 4: Skeleton C.7 from West.



21

Plate 5: Skeleton C.4 from West.

Plate 6: Skeleton C.22 from South.



22

Plate 8: Post-ex photo of grave cut C.34 from East

Plate 7: Skeletons C.27 & C.28 from East.



23

Plate 9: Skeletons C.5 & C.33 from Southeast.

Plate 10: Vertebra from Skeleton C.28 with visible signs of tuberculosis.



24

Plate 11: View of eastern half of trench with cover of Terram & sand from West.

Plate 12: View of western half of pipe trench with cover of Terram & sand.



25

Appendix 1: Context Register

Context No. Description1 2 Skeletons in grave cut c.102 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered3 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered4 Skeleton in grave cut c.205 Upper skeleton in grave cut c.346 Unexcavated skeleton to be re-covered7 Skeleton in grave cut c.188 Post-medieval material across site into which the graves are cut9 Natural10 Grave cut containing skeleton c.1, filled with c.1111 Fill of grave cut c.1012 Cancelled13 Cancelled14 Cancelled15 Cancelled16 Cancelled17 Cancelled18 Grave cut containing skeleton c.7 and coffin c.21. Filled by c.1919 Fill of grave cut c.1820 Grave cut containing skeleton c.4 and coffin c.31. Filled by c.3221 Coffin in grave cut c.18. Associated with skeleton c.722 Skeleton in grave cut c.2323 Grave cut containing skeleton c.22 and coffin c.25. Filled by c.2424 Fill of grave cut c.2325 Coffin in grave cut c.23. Associated with skeleton c.2226 Grave cut containing skeletons c.27 & c.28 and coffin c.2927 Upper skeleton in grave cut c.2628 Lower skeleton in grave cut c.2629 Coffin in grave cut c.26. Associated with skeletons c.27 & c.2830 Fill of grave cut c.2631 Coffin in grave cut c.20. Associated with skeleton c.432 Fill of grave cut c.2033 Lower skeleton in grave cut c.3434 Grave cut containing skeletons c.5 & c.33 and coffin c.36. Filled by c.3535 Fill of grave cut c.3436 Coffin in grave cut c.34. Associated with skeletons c.5 & c.3337 Cancelled38 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered39 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered40 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered41 Unexcavated burial to be re-covered42 Modern ground surface



26

Appendix 2: Report on the human skeletal remains

Report on the Human Skeletal Remains fromthe Hospital of the Assumption,

Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

Excavation No. 04E0599

Client: Eachtra Archaeological Projects, Cork

Linda Fibiger BA (Hons) MSc MIAIOctober 2004

Report on the Human Skeletal Remains Thurles Hospital, Co. Tipperary

Linda Fibiger October 2004

Please note that this report remains the property of the author and should not be

reproduced without written permission.

© Linda Fibiger, October 2004



1. INTRODUCTION

Archaeological monitoring and excavations at the Hospital of the Assumption in the

townland of Gortataggart, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, carried out by Eachtra

Archaeological Projects, revealed the presence of human skeletal remains. These

were part of the burial ground of the 19th century Union Workhouse at Thurles. Six

burials containing a total of nine individuals, five adults and four juveniles, were

hand-excavated and recorded. A number of additional burials had been partly

exposed but were not to be affected by the proposed development. These burials were

covered over with terram and sand. As no osteoarchaeologist was present during the

excavation, osteological information on the individuals is limited to small quantities

of disarticulated bone, which where collected from some of the burials during

monitoring.

2. PRESERVATION, POST-EXCAVATION PROCESSING AND BURIAL RITE

An inventory of the bones present and an assessment of the state of preservation for

each individual are given in the catalogue. Preservation of the skeletal remains varied

between moderate and poor. During post-excavation processing, all bones were

carefully cleaned using water, sponges and soft brushes, air-dried and stored in re-

sealable polythene bags.

All articulated remains were oriented east-west with the head at the western end of the

grave, which is characteristic for Christian burials. Except for Skeletons 1A and 1B,

all skeletal remains appeared to have been buried in wooden coffins, of which only

the iron nails and occasional small pieces of wood survived. All articulated remains

appeared to have been placed in their coffins in an extended and supine position, with

both arms extended by the side of the body.



3. OSTEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

3.1. Minimum Number of Individuals

The minimum number of individuals (MNI) present in an assemblage is determined

through an inventory of the main bones and joints of the body present (Tables 1 and

2). This gave a minimum number of 7 adults and 5 juveniles represented by all the

articulated and disarticulated remains from Thurles Hospital.

Table 1. MNI Adult Remains* Table 2. MNI Juvenile Remains* Skeletal Element Left Right

Frontal 5 4 Occipital 4 Temporal 5 5 Maxilla 4 4

Mandible 5 5 Medial Clavicle 3 3 Lateral Clavicle 3 3

Glenoid 4 4 Proximal Humerus 5 4

Distal Humerus 3 7 Proximal Radius 4 4

Distal Radius 4 5 Proximal Ulna 3 5

Distal Ulna 4 4 Proximal Femur 3 4

Distal Femur 4 5 Proximal Tibia 3 5

Distal Tibia 4 4 Proximal Fibula - -

Distal Fibula 4 3 Calcaneus 3 3

Talus 3 3 * Highest figure highlighted

3.2 Age Assessment

Age-related changes visible on the skeleton are caused by growth, development,

maturation and degeneration. Methods used in age assessment are generally more

precise in younger individuals, as changes during the development and growth of

bones and teeth until the age of about 25 years progress in a well-documented

manner.

At Thurles Hospital, the remains of five adults and four juveniles were present. For

the juvenile individuals, age assessment was based on dental calcification,

Skeletal Element Left Right Frontal 2 4

Occipital 3 Temporal 5 4 Maxilla 2 2

Mandible 4 4 Medial Clavicle 2 1 Lateral Clavicle 1 2

Glenoid 3 2 Proximal Humerus 2 2

Distal Humerus 2 4 Proximal Radius 1 4

Distal Radius 4 4 Proximal Ulna 2 3

Distal Ulna 2 4 Proximal Femur 4 4

Distal Femur 2 4 Proximal Tibia 2 4

Distal Tibia 1 4 Proximal Fibula 1 3

Distal Fibula 3 4 Ilium 4 4

Ischium 3 4 Pubis 2 4



development and eruption, applying the standards of Moorees et al. modified by

Smith (1991) for dental development and Ubelaker (1989: Fig. 71) for dental

eruption. This was supplemented by observing the appearance of epiphyses,

determining the extent of epiphyseal fusion and measuring long bone length (Scheuer

& Black 2000). Age assessment of the adult individuals was based on the stages of

fusion of the medial clavicle, iliac crest (Webb & Suchey 1985) and the 1st and 2nd

sacral body (Scheuer & Black 2000) in the younger age groups (Young Adults under

30 years). In addition, morphological changes of the pubic symphysis (Brooks &

Suchey 1990) and the auricular surface of the ilium (Lovejoy et al. 1985) helped to

define older age groups (Middle Adults aged over 25 years). Results of the age

assessment have been summarised in Table 3.

3.3 Sex Assessment

Sex assessment is reliable for adult skeletal remains only. It is based on differences in

size and shape (morphology) between males and females. These differences manifest

themselves primarily on the pelvis and skull, the former reflecting inherent skeletal

differences due to the biological requirements of childbirth in females. A number of

features of the pelvis and skull were scored for sex assessment where preserved and

observable (Herrmann et al. 1990: 73ff; Buikstra & Ubelaker 1994: 16ff), and

individuals were then classed as male, possibly male, female, possibly female or just

adult (unsexed) based on a composite score. Results of the sex assessment have been

summarised in Table 3.

Sex assessment of non-adult skeletons is generally problematic. Recognisable

sexually dimorphic features of the skeleton only start to develop with the onset of

puberty and the rise of testosterone levels in male individuals. These features do not

acquire their final expression until skeletal maturity in the early to mid twenties.

Methods for observing morphological differences between male and female perinatal

and young juvenile remains do exist (Schutkowski 1993; Molleson & Cruse 1998),

but have not been widely tested on assemblages other than the initial study groups. It

was therefore decided not to carry out any sex assessment of the juvenile remains

from Thurles Hospital.



Table 3. Age and Sex Assessment Skeleton No. Age Sex

Skeleton 1A 30+ years Male Skeleton 1B 30+ years n.a. Skeleton 4 4-5 years n.a. Skeleton 5 36-45 years Female Skeleton 7 5 years n.a.

Skeleton 22 6-7 years n.a. Skeleton 27 4-5 years n.a. Skeleton 28 36-45 years Female Skeleton 33 45+ years Male

3.4 Metric Summary and Adult Stature

Sets of measurements based on standards given in Buikstra & Ubelaker (1994) were

taken on the bones of each individual and all disarticulated remains where possible.

This included 22 measurements of the cranium and mandible and 28 predominantly

bilateral post-cranial measurements for adults and 12 bilateral post-cranial

measurements for juveniles. The available measurements for all articulated skeletons

are listed in Tables 4 to 6, whereas any measurements taken on disarticulated bones

were included in the catalogue.

Stature and body proportions are influenced by hereditary, environmental and social

factors, including nutritional status and disease. Stature calculations for adult

individuals of known sex were based on long bone length of the leg or arm using the

regression formulae developed by Trotter (1970). This gave a result of 154.6 cm for

Skeleton 5, 154.7 cm for Skeleton 28 and 175.6 for Skeleton 33. Table 7 compares

these results with other Irish and British post-medieval skeletal populations, and

although the sample from Thurles is very small, a few observations can be made. The

results for the females from Thurles can be placed at the lower end of post-medieval

female stature values, whereas the male result belong to the upper end of male stature

calculations. Considering all populations presented in the table, however, females

generally tend to show less overall variation in stature within and between

populations, lending weight to the idea that the female body is ultimately more

buffered against the strain put on the body by biological stresses as well as adverse

social and perhaps cultural conditions that predispose to disease, injury and impaired



physiological development (Stinson 1985). It is also interesting to note that the values

from Thurles compare well with those from another workhouse at Manorhamilton.

Table 4. Juvenile Post-Cranial Measurements (cm) Sk 4 Sk 7 Sk 22 Sk 27

L Clavicle length - - - - L Humerus diaphyseal length - - 16.1 -

L Humerus max diam. midshaft - - 1.2 - L Radius diaphyseal length - - - - L Ulna diaphyseal length - - 13.2 -

L Femur diaphyseal length 19.7 - - - L Femoral A-P subtrochan. diam. 1.5 - - - L Femoral M-L subtrochan. diam. 1.5 - - -

L Tibia diaphyseal length - - - - L Tibial A-P diameter 1.4 - - - L Tibial M-L diameter 1.1 - - -

L Fibula diaphyseal length - - - - R Clavicle length - - - -

R Humerus diaphyseal length - 14.6 - - R Humerus max diam. midshaft - 1.2 - -

R Radius diaphyseal length 10.4 - 12 10.8 R Ulna diaphyseal length 11.6 12 13.4 -

R Femur diaphyseal length 19.6 - 21.7 - R Femoral A-P subtrochan. diam. 1.5 - 1.6 - R Femoral M-L subtrochan. diam. 1.5 - 1.6 -

R Tibia diaphyseal length - 15.8 - - R Tibial A-P diameter 1.3 - - 1.5 R Tibial M-L diameter 1.1 - - 1.3

R Fibula diaphyseal length - 15.2 17.2 16

Table 5. Adult Cranial Measurements

Measurement Sk 1A (♂) Sk 1B (?) Sk 5 (♀) Sk 28 (♀) Sk 33 (♂) Cranial length - - 18.4 - 19

Cranial breadth - - 14.1 - 13.9 Bizygomatic diameter - - - - - Basion-bregma height - - 13.1 - -

Cranial base length - - 10.1 - - Biauricular breadth - - 11.8 - -

Minimum frontal breadth - - 10.2 - 9.8 Upper facial height - - - - -

Upper facial breadth - - 10.4 - 10.6 Nasal Height - - - - - Nasal breadth - - - - -

Orbital breadth* - - - - - Orbital height* - - - - -

Maxillo-alveolar breadth - - - - - Maxillo-alveolar length - - - - -

Frontal chord - - 11.8 - 11.2 Parietal chord 12.4 - 10.9 - 10.6

Occipital chord - - 9.2 - 9.4 Chin height - - - - -

Bigonial width 10.2 10.4 9.8 9.7 10.1 Bicondylar breadth 12.3 12.2 - 12 -

Minimum ramus breadth* 2.8 2.4 2.7 2.9 2.9



Table 6. Adult Post-Cranial Measurements (cm) Measurement Sk 1A (♂) Sk 1B (?) Sk 5 (♀) Sk 28 (♀) Sk 33 (♂)

L clavicle length - - - 12.2 - R clavicle length 14.8 - 14 - -

L clavicle mid-circumference - - - 3.8 - R clavicle mid-circumference - - 3.5 - -

L scapula height - - - - - R scapula height - - - - - L scapula breadth - - - - - R scapula breadth - - - - - L glenoid length 4.2 - 3.4 - - R glenoid length - - 3.5 3.5 - L glenoid breadth - - 2.4 - - R glenoid breadth - - 2.5 2.5 -

L humeral max. length - - - 28.8 34.3 R humeral max. length - - - - -

L humeral epicondylar width - - 5.5 5.8 6.3 R humeral epicondylar width - 6 5.4 6 -

L humeral head diameter - - - 4.1 4.3 R humeral head diameter - - - - -

L humerus-min. circumference - - - 6.8 6.4 R humerus-min. circumference - - - - -

L radial length - - 20.5 21 - R radial length - - - - - L ulnar length - - - 23 - R ulnar length - - 23.3 - 27.3

Anterior sacral length - - - - - Anterior superior sacral breadth - - - - -

L os coxae height - - - - - R os coxae height - - - - -

L femur-maximum length - - - - - R femur-maximum length - - - - -

L femur-oblique length - - - - - R femur-oblique length - - - - -

L femoral epicondylar breadth - - - - - R femoral epicondylar breadth - - - 7.6 8.4

L femur-midshaft circumference - - - - - R femur-midshaft circumference - - - - -

L femoral head diameter - - - 4.2 4.6 R femoral head diameter - - 4.1 - 4.7

L femur-A-P subtroch. diameter - - 2.5 3.2 3.1 R femur-A-P subtroch. diameter - - 2.5 - 2.9 L femur-M-L subtroch. diameter - - 3 2.9 3.3 R femur-M-L subtroch. diameter - - 3 - 3.2

L tibial max. length - - - - - R tibial max. length - - 32.3 - 38.9

L tibia-prox. epiphyseal breadth - - - - - R tibia-prox. epiphyseal breadth - - - - 7.9 L tibia-distal epiphyseal breadth - - - - 5.1 R tibia-distal epiphyseal breadth - - - 4.9 5.4

L tibia-A-P diameter - - 3 3.2 3.5 R tibia-A-P diameter - - 3.1 - 3.7 L tibia-M-L diameter - - 2.2 2.5 2.4 R tibia-M-L diameter - - 2.3 - 2.5 L fibular max. length - - - - - R fibular max. length - - - - -



Table 7. Average Stature in Irish and British Post-Medieval Skeletal Populations

Site Male Mean Stature

Female Mean Stature

Reference

Thurles Hospital 175.6 154.6

This report

Our Lady’s Hospital, Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim (Post-Medieval Workhouse)

174.5 155.2 Fibiger 2003

Johnstown, Co. Meath (Post-Medieval)

176.7 164.4 Fibiger 2004

Tintern Abbey, Wexford (16th century)

170.5 159.0 O’Donnabháin 1985

St. Peter’s Church, Waterford City

(Late 17th - 18th century)

173.2 154.04 Power 1997

Creagh Junction, Ballinasloe, Co. Galway

(Post-Medieval)

169.3 155.7 Fibiger 2002

St. Mary's Cathedral, Limerick

(Post-Medieval)

175.0 156.0 Power 1995

Waterford (17th - 18th century)

173.2 154.0 Power 1995

Spitalfields, London (18th - 19th century)

169.0 158.0 Molleson et al. 1993

3.5. Non-Metric Variation

Non-metric traits are anatomical variants. Their origin is usually described as a

combination of biological (genetic) and environmental (non-genetic) factors and seen

by some as a means to determine population relationships (Tyrell 2000). The validity

of this approach is subject to ongoing debate and large-scale multi-disciplinary studies

are needed to establish the actual value of scoring large numbers of non-metric traits.

A selection of traits was scored as present or absent for the Thurles Hospital sample

and included in the catalogue. As sample size is an important factor in the analysis of

non-metric traits, the size of this sample prevented any meaningful conclusions.

3.6 Dental Health and Disease

In the articulated sample, all adults and juveniles had complete or partial dentitions

had complete or partial dentitions available for observation. In addition, a mandibular

molar tooth root was associated with Skeletons 1A and 1B. Dental diseases noted

included calculus, dental abscesses, caries, ante-mortem tooth loss and enamel

hypoplasia.



Table 8. Dental Disease (Erupted teeth only) Adult Sample

n-Teeth n-Individuals Juvenile Sample

n-Teeth n-Individuals Observable tooth positions 129 5 72 4

Teeth present 48 5 47 4

AM tooth loss 62 5 - -

PM tooth loss 20 4 27 4

Calculus 27 4 24 4

Caries 18 5 1 1

Abscesses 11 3 - -

Enamel hypoplasia 7 2 - -

Calculus is a mineralised plaque deposit commonly recorded in archaeological

populations and generally builds up faster with a sucrose-rich diet (Roberts &

Manchester 1995: 55). Although its occurrence is usually painless, it can contribute

to the development of other dental conditions, such as infections and periodontal

disease. Over 50 % of adult and juvenile teeth present exhibited calculus deposits.

Dental abscesses are usually diagnosed through the presence of draining sinuses in the

alveolar bone of the maxillae or mandible. They are caused by infection as a result of

exposure of the pulp cavity or root of the tooth to bacterial attack, or where severe

periodontal disease leads to an accumulation of plaque between the teeth and the

gums. In the course of the infection, pus starts to build up within the chamber in the

bone, which results in increasing pressure and eventually a sinus (hole) develops to

allow the pus to drain out (Roberts & Manchester 1995: 50). The infection can also

spread beyond the alveolus to the surrounding bone, which appeared to have been the

case with Skeleton 1B. Overall, three adult dentitions were visibly affected by dental

abscesses.

Ante-mortem tooth loss can be diagnosed when an observable tooth socket has been

filled in by new bone formation. It can be the result of continued eruption of teeth

due to severe tooth wear or occur secondary to periodontal disease, caries or dental

abscesses. 48 % of adult teeth at Thurles had been lost during life, and all adult

individuals were affected.



Enamel hypoplasia manifests itself in the form of lines, grooves or pits on the enamel

surface of the tooth crown. It is the result of a systemic disturbance during tooth

formation, such as nutritional stress or disease (Hillson 1996: 165). As crown

formation of the permanent teeth is complete by approximately the seventh year,

dental hypoplasia only indicates systemic disturbances during foetal development and

early childhood (Holst & Coughlan 2000:83). Two individuals from Thurles were

affected.

In summary, the small dental sample from Thurles Hospital indicates the presence of

a number of common dental diseases and overall poor dental health and hygiene,

evident in the large number of teeth lost during life, as well as the fact that all adult

individuals were affected by caries and/or dental abscesses.

3.7 Joint Disease

Degenerative joint disease is one of the most frequently recorded and reported

pathological changes recognisable on human skeletal remains. As a degenerative

condition, its occurrence tends to be age-related and changes seen are primarily the

result of general wear and tear of the joint. The presence of joint disease, however,

should never be used as the sole parameter for age assessment (Rogers & Waldron

1995: 9). Joint disease can be accelerated by trauma or develop secondary to other

pathological conditions (Ortner 2003: 546-7). The main diagnostic features include

osteophyte formation (bony growth around the joint margin), porosity (characterised

by pitting of the joint surface) and eburnation (polishing of the joint surface as result

of bone-to-bone contact). The latter is pathognomonic of osteoarthritis (Rogers &

Waldron 1995: 36). Intervertebral joints may also be affected by Schmorl’s Nodes,

small depressions in the superior or inferior surface of the vertebral body that are

caused by herniation of disc material into the adjacent vertebral body. They are

considered to be a result of considerable (compressive) strain on the spine during

heavy labour or lifting, especially during the second and third decade of life.

Degenerative changes of the spine were observed on Skeleton 28 and 33, as well on

vertebral elements associated with Skeletons 1A and 1B. Also affected by post-

cranial degenerative joint disease were the temporal-mandibular joint and shoulder of

Skeleton 1A, the shoulder of Skeleton 5, the shoulder and knee of Skeleton 28 and the



temporal-mandibular joint, shoulder, ribs and foot of Skeleton 33. In addition, the

latter presented with osteoarthritis of the left wrist. The overall degree of

degenerative changes present appears to reflect general age-related changes, and it

should be noted that the only case of osteoarthritis occurs in the oldest individual

within the assemblage.

3.8 Osteoporosis

In a modern clinical context, senile osteoporosis is frequently found in post-

menopausal women or more generally in men and women over 60 years of age

(Aufderheide & Rodríguez-Martin 1998: 314). Dietary deficiencies and general

hardship might accelerate the onset of the condition, and secondary osteoporosis is

directly related to a known cause, such as prolonged malnutrition or a specific disease

(Brickley 2002: 365). On the bone, osteoporosis is characterised by significant

reduction of bone mass and manifests itself through reduction of trabeculae in the

cancellous parts of bones (Brickley 2000; Ortner 2003: 411ff.). It can significantly

increase the risk of fractures as a result of reduced mechanical strength in bones of

affected individuals. One individual at Thurles, Skeleton 28, presented a possible

case of osteoporosis, characterised by noticeably reduced trabecular density visible in

damaged long bone ends. Considering the documented shortage of adequate foodstuff

in the workhouse and the general hardship experienced by the inmates, it is probable

that a significant number would have developed deficiency-related disorders such as

secondary osteoporosis.

It is important to point out that macroscopic methods are not necessarily adequate to

assess the occurrence and prevalence of the condition, and only more specialised

diagnostic methods such as radiographic images and systematic sectioning of

vertebral bodies result in an accurate analysis of the occurrence of the disease

(Brickley 2000).

3.9 Infectious Disease

Infectious diseases are still one of the major causes of death today, just as they were

in the past. These diseases, however, frequently kill an individual quickly and

therefore do not always leave any visible signs on the skeleton. What can be observed

on skeletal material are more chronic conditions that the affected individual survived



for months or even years - long enough to develop skeletal changes. Infections

identified on skeletal remains can be roughly divided into specific and non-specific,

i.e. those conditions attributed to a specific infective agent and others that could be

caused by a number of organisms such as staphylococcus or streptococcus bacteria or

a range of viruses, fungi and parasites (Ortner 2003: 179ff).

Three of the four articulated juvenile individuals, one adult and two disarticulated

adult bones showed lesions that can be interpreted as the result of infectious

conditions. Of these six cases, two appeared to represent active stages of a disease

process, indicated by the presence of un-remodelled new bone deposits. Plaque-like

deposits of compact bone and smaller deposits of un-remodelled woven bone were

present on the legs and right clavicle of Skeleton 4. In the case of Skeleton 27,

deposits of new bone were present on the mandible, maxilla and left and right femur.

In contrast to these cases, the deposits of new bone on the left and right femur of

Skeleton 7 and the tibial diaphysis fragment associated with Skeleton 2 showed an

advanced degree of remodelling, indicating that the acute stage of the condition had

passed.

All cases in the articulated sample appeared to have been systemic conditions, as

lesions were present at least bilaterally and in the case of Skeletons 4 and 27 even

distributed throughout the skeleton. Further, the degree of new bone formation and

remodelling present indicated long-standing, chronic conditions. A more specific

diagnosis is difficult, but one condition to be considered is osteomyelitis. It is an

infection originating in the bone marrow, usually resulting from the introduction of

pyogenic (pus-producing) bacteria into the bone, either via the bloodstream or through

wounds and open fractures. Its hematogenous form predominantly affects children

(Ortner 2003: 181) and a distinctive feature of osteomyelitis in the skeleton, often

seen on longbones, is extensive new bone formation. In the latter stages, this tends to

totally encase the infected bone and is termed an involucrum. None of the cases at

Thurles show the advanced stages of the disease, but it is interesting to note that all

affected articulated skeletons are those of juveniles, which fits the general pattern of

the disease.



Also present at Thurles Hospital were two possible cases of Tuberculosis.

Transmission of the disease between humans through infected droplets is caused by

mycobacterium tuberculosis, whereas animal to human transmission is linked to

mycobacterium bovis and primarily occurs through contaminated animal products like

milk (Ortner 2003: 227; Roberts & Buikstra 2003: 4-5). The bacteria first get lodged

in the lungs or gastrointestinal tract. Primary tuberculosis can develop, with the

possibility of re-infection at a later stage. Pulmonary tuberculosis, which is often

diagnosed five years or longer after the initial infection, is termed secondary

tuberculosis (Roberts & Buikstra 2003: 4). The first case at Thurles affected Skeleton

28, which showed characteristic lytic lesions of the 4th and 5th lumbar vertebra,

indicative of spinal tuberculosis. In the second case, a small lytic lesion was present

on the pleural surface of a disarticulated rib shaft fragment associated with Skeletons

1A and 1B, indicative of a possible case of pulmonary tuberculosis.

The main factors governing the transmission of the disease are close or crowded

living conditions, close contact with animals and ingestion of infected products as

well as lowered immune status of individuals. All these factors would potentially

have been present at Thurles. It is also important to note that in a clinical context

only between 3 and 5 % of patients with tuberculosis develop skeletal changes

(Roberts & Buikstra 2003: 89), and the presence of two possible cases at Thurles

strongly suggests that the condition was relatively common.

3.10 Trauma

Only one case of minor soft tissue trauma was noted in the assemblage. A small, sub-

circular nodule of compact bone was present on the medial and proximal aspect of the

left 2nd metatarsal diaphysis of Skeleton 28. It is most likely the result of a localised

muscle or tendon injury.

3.11 Congenital Anomalies

Congenital anomalies or malformations affect approximately 4.5 % of newborn

infants. 90 % of these defects are genetic and they can range in severity from small

variants with no functional consequence to the individual, to severe defects not

compatible with life (Aufderheide & Rodríguez-Martin 1998: 51). The only

congenital anomalies noted in the assemblage were a case of spina bifida occulta



(non-union of the posterior sacral vertebral arches) affecting Skeleton 5 and an

asymmetrically fused posterior thoracic vertebral arch noted on Skeleton 7. Only the

latter defect could potentially have resulted in noticeable symptoms later in life, such

as early degenerative changes of the spine and back pain.

4. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The osteological analysis of the remains from Thurles Hospital indicated the presence

of a population group that included an almost equal number of adults and juveniles.

Although the assemblage was small, a relatively high number of pathologies could be

noted. These included a high prevalence of ante-mortem tooth loss, dental abscesses

and other dental conditions indicative of poor dental health, degenerative joint

disease, a possible case of osteoporosis, minor congenital conditions, a case of soft

tissue trauma and most importantly a high number of infectious conditions. The latter

are a good reflection of the crowded and probably unhygienic living conditions and

general physical and nutritional hardship the inmates of the workhouse would

haveexperienced, resulting in a compromised immune status and the susceptibility to

infectious conditions.



5. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Aufderheide, A.C. & C. Rodríguez-Martin 1998. The Cambridge encyclopaedia of

human paleopathology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Brickley, M. 2000. The diagnosis of metabolic disease in archaeological bone. In M. Cox & S. Mays (eds.) Human osteology in archaeology and forensic science: 183-198. London: Greenwich Medical Media.

Brickley, M. 2002. An investigation of historical and archaeological evidence for

age-related bone loss and osteoporosis. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 12: 364-371.

Brooks, S. & J.M. Suchey 1990. Skeletal age determination based on the os pubis: A

comparison of the Acsádi-Nemeskéri and Suchey-Brooks methods. Journal of Human Evolution 5: 227-238.

Buikstra, J.E & D.H. Ubelaker (eds.) 1994. Standards for the data collection from

human skeletal remains. Arkansas Archaeological Survey Research Series 44. Fayetteville: Arkansas Archaeological Survey.

Fibiger, L. 2002. Report on the human skeletal remains from Creagh Junction, Ballinasloe, County Galway (Excavation No. 01E1180 Ext.). Unpublished Skeletal Report.

Fibiger, L. 2003. Report on the human remains from Our Lady’s Hospital,

Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim (Excavation No. 01E0720 Ext.). Unpublished Skeletal Report. (For Moore Archaeological and Environmental Services)

Fibiger, L. 2004. Report on the human skeletal remains from Johnstown 1, Co. Meath

(Excavation No. 02E0462). Unpublished Skeletal Report. Herrmann, B., G. Grupe, S. Hummel, H. Piepenbrink & H. Schutkowski 1990.

Prähistorische Anthropologie. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.

Hillson, S. 1996. Dental anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Holst, M. & J. Coughlan 2000. Dental health and disease. In V. Fiorato, A. Boylston

& C. Knüsel (eds.) Blood red roses. The archaeology of a mass grave from the battle of Towton: 77-89. Oxford: Oxbow Books.

Lovejoy, C.O., R.S. Meindl, T.R. Pryzbeck & R.P. Mensforth 1985. Chronological

metamorphosis of the auricular surface of the ilium: A new method for the determination of age at death. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 68: 15-28.



Molleson, T., M. Cox, A.H. Waldron & D.K. Whittaker 1993. The Spitalfields Project Volume 2 – The Anthropology. The Middling Sort. York: Council for British Archaeology, CBA Research Report 86.

Molleson, T. & K. Cruse 1998. Some sexually dimorphic features of the human

juvenile skull and their value in sex determination in immature skeletal remains. Journal of Archaeological Science 25: 719-728.

O’Donnabháin, B. 1985. The human remains from Tintern Abbey, Co. Wexford. Unpublished Thesis, University College Cork.

Ortner, D. J. 2003. Identification of pathological conditions in human skeletal remains (2nd edn.). San Diego: Academic Press.

Power, C. 1995. A Medieval demographic sample. In R.M. Cleary (ed.) Excavations

at the Dominican Priory, St. Mary of the Isle, Crosse’s Green, Cork: 66-83. Cork: Cork University Press.

Power, C. 1997. Human skeletal remains. In M.F. Hurley Late Viking Age and medieval Waterford: Excavations 1986-1992: 762-818. Waterford: Waterford Corporation.

Roberts, C. & K. Manchester 1995. The archaeology of disease (2nd edn.). Stroud:

Sutton Publishing.

Roberts, C.A. & J.E. Buikstra 2003. The bioarchaeology of tuberculosis. A global view of a reemerging disease. Gainsville: University Press of Florida.

Rogers, J. & T. Waldron 1995. A field guide to joint disease in archaeology.

Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.

Scheuer, L. & S. Black 2000. Developmental juvenile osteology. London: Academic Press.

Schutkowski, H. 1993. Sex determination of infant and juvenile skeletons. 1. Morphognostic features. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 90: 199-205.

Smith, B. H. 1991. Standards of human tooth formation and dental age assessment. In M.A. Kelley & C.S. Larsen (eds.) Advances in dental anthropology: 143-168. New York: Wiley-Liss.

Stinson, S. 1985. Sex differences in environmental sensitivity during growth and

development. Yearbook of Physical Anthropology 28: 123-147.



Trotter, M. 1970. Estimation of stature from long bone limbs. In T.D. Stewart (ed.) Personal identification in mass disasters: 71-119. Washington: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.

Tyrell, A. 2000. Skeletal non-metric traits and the assessment of inter- and intra-population diversity: Past problems and future potential. In M. Cox & S. Mays (eds.) Human osteology in archaeology and forensic science: 289-306. London: Greenwich Medical Media.

Ubelaker, D. 1989. Human skeletal remains: Excavation, analysis, interpretation (2nd

edn.). Washington, D.C.: Taraxacum. van Beek, G.C. 1983. Dental morphology. An illustrated guide (2nd edn.). Oxford:

Wright. Webb, P.A.O. & J.M. Suchey 1985. Epiphyseal union of the anterior iliac crest and

medial clavicle in a modern multiracial sample of American males and females. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 68: 457-466.



6. CATALOGUE

Anatomical elements used for sex and age assessment and stature calculations are given in brackets where available. KEY:

Permanent Dentition

Right Maxilla Left Maxilla

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Right Mandible Left Mandible

Deciduous Dentition

Right Maxilla Left Maxilla

e d c b a a b c d e e d c b a a b c d e

Right Mandible Left Mandible

x = Tooth lost ante-mortem A = Abscess

/ = Tooth lost post-mortem c = Calculus

C = Caries H = Enamel hypoplasia

NP = Not present (unobservable) U = Tooth unerupted

E = Tooth erupting

n.a.= not available

L = Left TMJ = Temporomandibular joint

R = Right ACJ = Acromioclavicular joint

C = Cervical vertebra SCJ = Sternoclavicular joint

T = Thoracic vertebra GHJ = Glenohumeral joint

LV = Lumbar vertebra

S = Sacral vertebra

VB = Vertebral body

VF = Vertebral articular facet



SKELETON 1A Sex: Male? (Skull) Age: Middle Adult (30+ years) Stature: n.a. Bones present: Figure 1 Condition: Poor Burial type: Wooden coffin? Burial position: Supine and extended? Dentition:

Dental pathology: Ante-mortem tooth loss (7/27), caries (7/16), abscesses (3/27), calculus (11/16-slight to moderate), slight to moderate dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Extra-spinal DJD: Severe PO R ACJ, slight OP & PO R TMJ. Non-metric traits present: Supraorbital notch (L). SKELETON 1B Sex: n.a. Age: Middle Adult (30+ years) Stature: n.a. Bones present: Figure 2 Condition: Poor Burial type: Wooden coffin? Burial position: Supine and extended? Dentition:

Dental pathology: Ante-mortem tooth loss (3/14), caries (2/9), abscesses (6/14), calculus (5/9-slight to moderate), slight to moderate dental wear. Deposits of almost remodelled compact bone are present on the anterior mandible at the R second premolar and first molar and the left molars. The deposits are the result of substantial dental abscesses whose infectious foci appear to have spread from the teeth to the overlying soft tissue. Skeletal pathology: - Bone associated with Skeletons 1A and 1B Bones present: Frontal fragment, R mandibular molar root with caries lesion, ossified thyroid cartilage, C1-7 (VB osteophytosis C5; VB porosity C5-6; VF porosity C3, C5), 2x C VB, T1-12 - bodies only (VB osteophytosis T8, T12; Schmorl’s Nodes T9-

x RC NP NP c RCA x?A RCA c c cC C x x x

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

NP x c / / / c cC NP NP cC / c c c x

NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

cC xA RA RA c c c NP NP / c / RCA? xA? xA?



12), 1x T VF with sever osteophytosis and porosity, LV1-5 - bodies only, 1x LV VF with severe porosity, cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral vertebral body and arch fragments, 11 R and 8 L vertebral rib ends, rib shaft fragments, scapular spine and blade fragments, L tibial diaphysis fragment, 4 ilial fragments including auricular surface and iliac crest, metacarpal diaphysis and head fragments, R 3rd metatarsal, L 4th metatarsal, 3 intermediate and 2 distal hand phalanges, 2x pisiform, L trapezium, L triquetral (Adult) and parietal fragment (Juvenile). One R rib shaft fragment has a small erosive lesion (approx. 0.1 cm medial-lateral by 0.5 cm superior-inferior) with a porous floor on its inferior visceral aspect. Differential diagnosis includes tuberculosis. SKELETON 4 Sex: n.a. Age: 4-5 years (Teeth) Bones present: Figure 3 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Associated DAR: Lumbar vertebral fragment and long bone fragments (Adult). Dentition:

U E c c c / c c NP NP 7 6 e d c b a a b c d e 6 7 7 6 e d c b a a b c d e 6 7

U E c c / / / c c E U Dental pathology: Calculus (9/19-slight), slight dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Infection: Extensive, almost plaque-like deposits of porous and striated compact bone are present on the anterior-lateral/posterior-lateral aspect of the L&R femoral diaphysis, with involvement of the linea aspera. A small deposit of woven bone is also visible on the left distal and anterior femoral diaphysis. Deposits of mixed porous woven bone and striated compact bone are present along the lateral anterior and inferior R clavicle along the insertion of M. deltoid, costoclavicular ligament, M. trapezius and M. pectoralis major. The distributed nature of these bilateral lesions is indicative of a chronic, systemic infection which appeared to have been active at the time of death. A differential diagnosis includes hematogenous osteomyelitis. SKELETON 5 Sex: Female (Pelvis, skull) Age: 36-45 years (Auricular surface) Stature: 154.6 ± 3.66 cm (R tibia) Bones present: Figure 4 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin



Burial position: Supine and extended Associated burials: Skeleton 33 Dentition:

Dental pathology: Ante-mortem tooth loss (7/32), caries (6/16), abscesses (2/32), calculus (8/16- moderate), pitted enamel hypoplasia (5/15), slight dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Extra-spinal DJD: Slight PO L&R glenohumeral joint. Congenital anomalies: Spina bifida occulta (S2-5). Miscellaneous conditions: Robust insertions for L&R M. deltoid, L&R M. teres major and M. pectoralis major and L&R M. gluteus maximus. Increased anterior-posterior curvature of sternum. Comments: A small iron fragment has fused to the R ulnar diaphysis - probably a coffin nail. Non-metric traits present: Supra-orbital notch (L), supraorbital foramen (R), parietal foramen (bilateral), atlas bridging and accessory transverse foramen (C5-7). SKELETON 7 Sex: n.a. Age: 5 years (Teeth) Bones present: Figure 5 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Associated burials: Skeleton 22 Dentition:

E NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP NP c E

6 e d c b a a b c d e 6 6 e d c b a a b c d e 6

/ c c NP NP NP NP NP NP NP C NP Dental pathology: Caries (1/5), calculus (3/5-slight), slight dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Infections: Deposits of almost completely remodelled, faintly porous compact bone are present on the L&R medial tibial diaphysis. They indicate a healed, systemic condition, most likely of an infectious nature. Differential diagnosis includes hematogenous osteomyelitis. Congenital anomalies: A posterior mid-thoracic vertebral arch showed an asymmetrical fusion pattern at the midline point - the R vertebral half-arch had fused along the superior edge of the L lamina, posterior to the superior articular facet, rather than at the posterior extent of the two half-arches. This is most likely a congenital defect.

C / c H CH / / H cH c / xA x RC

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

x x x / / cC / / c cH /A c cC x C x



SKELETON 22 Sex: n.a. Age: 6-7 years (Teeth) Bones present: Figure 6 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Associated burials: Skeleton 7 Dentition:

U c c / / / E NP NP U 7 6 e d c b 1 1 b c d e 6 7 7 6 e d c 2 1 1 2 c d e 6 7

U c c NP / c c / c U Dental pathology: Calculus (7/16-slight to moderate), slight to moderate dental wear. Skeletal pathology: - Comments: Iron fragment has fused to left anterior glenoid margin - probably a coffin nail. Bone associated with Skeletons 7 and 22 Bones present: 6 C bodies, 6 fused C arches, anterior atlas epiphysis, 3 L and 4 R C arches, 10 T bodies, 4 fused T arches, 13 L and 6 R T arches, LV body fragments, 4 fused LV arches, 1 R LV arch, S1, S2, S3, S4, 2 left and 1 right sacral auricular surface, 19 L vertebral rib ends, 7 R vertebral rib ends, rib shaft fragments (Juvenile), rib shaft fragments and scapular spine fragment (Adult) SKELETON 27 Sex: n.a. Age: 4-5 years (Teeth) Bones present: Figure 7 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Dentition:

/ c / / / / / / / / /

6 e d c b a a b c d e 6 6 e d c b a a b c d e 6

E c c / / / / / / c c / Dental pathology: Calculus (5/7-slight). Skeletal pathology: Infections: Deposits of porous woven bone and occasionally mixed woven and compact bone are present on the R internal mandibular ramus superior to the mandibular foramen, on the L&R external mandibular body at the 1st permanent molar, on the L&R external maxilla at the 1st permanent molar and at the R external maxilla between the 1st permanent molar and the deciduous canine. A plaque-like



deposit of compact bone is present on the R external mandibular body extending from the 1st to the 2nd deciduous molar, and increased porosity is visible on the anterior maxilla and the palate. Post-cranially, on the R lateral and medial femoral diaphysis, deposits of striated and porous compact bone are visible, and a striated compact bone deposit is also present on the L posterior-lateral femoral diaphysis. There also is an abnormal degree of sub-metaphyseal porosity of the proximal L femur. The distributed nature of these bilateral lesions, affecting the skull and upper legs, indicate the presence of a chronic, systemic infection which appeared to have been active at the time of death. Differential diagnosis includes hematogenous osteomyelitis. SKELETON 28 Sex: Female (Pelvis, skull) Age: 36-45 years (Auricular surface) Stature: 154.7 ± 4.45 cm (L humerus) Bones present: Figure 8 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Dentition:

Dental pathology: Ante-mortem tooth loss (19/28), caries (1/4), calculus (3/4- moderate), moderate dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Spinal DJD: OP of dens facet, VB osteophytosis C2-4, C7, T10-12; VB porosity C3-7; Schmorl’s nodes T7-12; VF osteophytosis C5; VF porosity C4-5, T4-5. Extra-spinal DJD: Porosity R GHJ, osteophytosis L&R knee. Trauma: A small, sub-circular deposit of compact bone is present on the medial and proximal aspect of the L 2nd metatarsal diaphysis - probably the result of localised muscle or tendon injury. Metabolic disease: Osteoporosis? Noticeable reduction in trabecular density where observable due to post-mortem breakage, e.g. proximal humerus, tibia and femur. Infection: A large erosive or lytic defect with little remodelling present at the inferior and posterior body of LV5 has reduced vertebral height by half on the right aspect of LV5. A smaller, circular erosive or lytic defect (approximately 0.5 cm in diameter) is present on the anterior body of LV4. Some reactive bone is present on the lateral body and pedicles of LV4 and the pedicles of LV5. S1 is too damaged to observe any changes. Differential diagnosis included spinal tuberculosis. Miscellaneous conditions: Robust insertions for L&R M. deltoid and L&R M. gluteus maximus. Pinprick porosity visible on endocranial parietals. The cranial vault bones appear unusually thick (~1.0 cm at the parietal bosses and 1.1 cm at lambda) - the outer table

NP x x / x x x x / / RC x x NP NP NP

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

x x x c x x / / x x c c x x x x



is slightly thicker than the inner table, but the quality of the bone and the appearance of the diploë are normal. Non-metric traits present: Supraorbital foramen (L), parietal foramen (R), divided hypoglossal canal (L), mastoid foramen (bilateral), mylohyoid bridge (bilateral), accessory transverse foramen (C5), squatting facet (R). SKELETON 33 Sex: Male (Pelvis, skull) Age: 45+ years (Auricular surface, pubic symphysis) Stature: 176.6 ± 3.37 cm (R tibia) Bones present: Figure 9 Condition: Moderate Burial type: Wooden coffin Burial position: Supine and extended Associated burials: Skeleton 5 Dentition:

Dental pathology: Ante-mortem tooth loss (26/28), caries (1/2), linear enamel hypoplasia (2/2), moderate dental wear. Skeletal pathology: Spinal DJD: VB osteophytosis C4, C7, T1-6; VB porosity C2-7, T6; VF osteophytosis C4, C6-7, T1; VF porosity C3-4, C6-7, 1 LV facet; VF eburnation C7, T1. Extra-spinal DJD: Porosity R TMJ, L&R ACJ, L SCJ, L&R GHJ, R distal ulna and L proximal 3rd tarsal-metatarsal joint; osteophytosis of L&R knee; DJD of L rib heads and facets and L wrist; osteoarthritis of L hand with eburnation on 1st carpal-metacarpal joint. Miscellaneous conditions: Robust insertions for L&R M. deltoid, M. teres major, M. pectoralis major and L&R M. gluteus maximus. Non-metric traits present: Supraorbital notch (R), septal aperture (L). Bone associated with Skeletons 5 and 33 Bones present: Hyoid (fused), ossified thyroid cartilage, 10 proximal and 1 intermediate foot phalanx and sesamoid bone (foot).

NP NP NP NP x x x x x x x x x x x x

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

x x x x x H x x x x CH x x x x x



Figure 1. Skeleton 1A Figure 2. Skeleton 1B Figure 3. Skeleton 4 Figure 4. Skeleton 5



Figure 5. Skeleton 7 Figure 6. Skeleton 22 Figure 7. Skeleton 27 Figure 8. Skeleton 28



Figure 9. Skeleton 33 Bone from monitoring Skeleton 2 Bones present: L proximal tibial diaphysis fragment - deposit of striated compact bone present on the medial aspect as result of localised injury of infection, R 1st metatarsal and proximal and distal phalanx and L proximal 1st metatarsal fragment (Adult). Bone from monitoring Skeleton 3 Bones present: R parietal, L parietal fragments, L and central frontal fragments, L supraorbital margin, R temporal including petrous temporal, L temporal squama and zygomatic arch, sphenoid fragments (greater wing), L&R zygomatic, basil synchondrosis (fused), L pubic symphysis (Stage II - 19-40 years), proximal ⅔ of L radius, L femoral diaphysis including distal epiphysis, L tibial diaphysis including distal epiphysis (A-P diameter: 3.3 cm, M-L diameter 2.0 cm), fibular diaphysis including distal epiphysis and L 3rd and 4th metacarpal (Adult). Unmarked DAR Includes arm and leg bones of 2 adult individuals and general disarticulated adult and juvenile remains. ‘Individual 1’: R radius (proximal epiphysis broken), R ulna (Max. length: 26 cm), L radius (proximal epiphysis broken), L ulna (Max. length: 26 cm), R 2nd-5th



metacarpal, 4 proximal and 1 intermediate hand phalanx, fragmented R femur (Femoral head diameter: 5.1 cm) with robust linea aspera and slight osteophytosis of distal epiphysis, fragmented R tibial diaphysis with robust soleal line (A-P diameter: 4.0 cm, M-L diameter: 2.4 cm), L femoral diaphysis and femoral head, L patella, L sciatic notch (Narrow), ‘Individual 2’: Fragmented R radius, distal ½ of R ulna, 1st metacarpal, R scaphoid, R metacarpals 1, 2 and 5, L 1st-4th metacarpal, 8 proximal, 1 intermediate and 1 distal phalanx, lateral R clavicle, R scapular spine and coracoid process, L clavicle (Max. length: 15 cm; Mid-circumference: 3.5 cm), fragmented R femur (Epicondylar breadth: 7.8 cm), fragmented R tibia including proximal diaphysis (A-P diameter: 3.6 cm, M-L diameter: 2.2 cm), L pubis, General DAR present : 2 parietal fragments, VB fragments of at least 4 LV (including one with osteophytosis), S1 with Schmorl’s node, S5, 12 rib shaft fragments, L lumbar(?) rib, 2 humeral head fragments, 1 R trochlea fragment, 2 R capitulum fragments, pisiform, right fibular diaphysis fragments, R patella, 2 R acetabular fragments, L&R ilial fragments (including iliac crest), L sciatic notch fragment (Adult), 2 cranial vault fragments, L zygomatic, L petrous temporal and L radial diaphysis fragment (Juvenile).



7. Bones and Teeth of the human skeleton



BONES OF THE ADULT SKELETON

Cranium

MandibleClavicle

Scapula

Humerus

Ulna

Radius

Carpals

Metacarpals Phalanges

FemurPatella

Tibia

FibulaTarsals

Metatarsals

Phalanges

Sternum

Ribs

Vertebrae

Os Coxae

Sacrum



BONES AND SUTURES OF THE SKULL

ParietalFrontal

Temporal

Occipital

Mandible

Maxilla Zygomatic

Sphenoid

Nasal

Coronal Suture

Lambdoid Suture

ParietalParietal

Frontal

Sagittal Suture

Coronal Suture

Occipital

Squamosal Suture



PERMANENT DENTITION

Maxilla

Mandible

(After van Beek 1983: Figs. 29 and 30)

3

1 = Medial Incisor 2 = Lateral Incisor 3 = Canine 4 = First Premolar 5 = Second Premolar 6 = First Molar 7 = Second Molar 8 = Third Molar

2 1 3 4 5 6 7 8

8 7 6 5 4

2 1



DECIDUOUS DENTITION

Maxilla

Mandible

(After van Beek 1983: Figs. 7 and 8)

a b c d e

e d c b a

a = Medial Incisor b = Lateral Incisor c = Canine d = First Molar e = Second Molar



8. Glossary of Osteological Terms



Terms of Direction

Anterior Towards the front of the body

Posterior Towards the back of the body

Superior Towards the head

Inferior Towards the feet

Medial Towards the midline of the body

Lateral Away from the midline of the body

Proximal Closer to the trunk (most frequently used for long bones)

Distal Further from the body

Anatomical Features

Articulation Area of joint between bones

Capitulum Rounded area of articulation on distal humerus

Condyle A rounded prominence, usually articular

Cortical bone Dense outer layer of bone, thickest in long bone shafts

Diaphysis Shaft of a long bone

Epiphysis End of a long bone

Facet Small, flat articular surface

Metaphysis Growth area between epiphysis and diaphysis

Process A thin projection

Sinus A void

Trabecular bone Less dense bone with honeycomb structure (e.g. ends of long

bone)

M. biceps brachii Name of muscle

Pathological Terms

Hematogenous Via the blood stream

Lesion Change to bone as result of disease or trauma

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Ex., Thurles Hospital, Thurles, Co Tipperary

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